Pallet



June 15, 1954 v, v s 2,681,198

PALLET Filed Aug. 10, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 1' June 15, 1954 v. B. GLEAVES PALLET Filed Aug. 10, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented June 15, 1954 UNITED 5% ATENT OFFICE 5 Claims. 1 My invention relates generally to pallets, and more particularly to an improved pallet for use with fork lift trucks in the handling of various packages and articles such, for example, as are commonly shipped by less than carload freight.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved pallet for use with fork lift trucks, which may be conveniently used in handling various articles, particularly less than car-load freight, at a railroad station.

A further object is to provide a pallet which is low, so that, when resting on the floor, loads may be pushed from it to the floor without damage to the load.

A further object is to provide a pallet which is very simple in construction, which is light in Weight, which may be economically manufactured, which may be used in the customary manner with a fork lift truck, from which loads may be raised by a fork lift truck, and which means engageable by hooks on the lift truck so that loads may be pushed from the pallet.

Other objects will appear from the following description, reference being had to the accordpanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of the pallet showing portion of the fork lift truck, namely a hooking mechanism by which the pallet may be retained on the fork of the truck;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an end elevation, showing a portion of the hooking mechanism;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4l4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a bottom plan View of the pallet and of a portion of the hooking mechanism; and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary, enlarged view of a cleat as secured to the top of the pallet, showing the tapering of the cleat at its front end.

The pallet comprises a single rectangular sheet it having a relatively narrow, downwardly sloping front end portion [2 and a somewhat wider, upwardly sloping back end portion I l. The sheet H3 may be made of any suitable material, such as steel, a laminated plastic, or other suitable material having the required strength and rigidity. A pipe 55 is secured along the middle portion of the edge of the upwardly sloping back end portion M by welding, if the sheet is of steel, or by curling the edge of the sheet to form it in a shape similar to the pipe, or otherwise reinforcing the edge portion of the sheet.

The pipe I6 or other reinforcement of an edge of the upwardly sloping back end portion is adapted to be engaged by a hook mechanism carried by the lift truck on the forked portion thereof. This mechanism is herein illustrated as a pair of hooks is pivoted on brackets 28 and connected by a rod 22. A rope 2% running over a suitable pulley 26, has one end attached to the rod 22 and its other end suitably anchored so that the hooks I 8 may be disengaged from the pallet by a tug on the rope. The forward ends of the hooks it are provided with suitable cam surfaces 28 so that as the forks of the truck are slid beneath the pallet, the hooks will latch over the reinforced edge of the upwardly sloping end portion of the pallet.

Six spaced ribs or cleats 30, extending long;- tudinally of the pallet, are secured to the top of sheet l0, being substantially coextensive with the plane portion of the sheet. Similarly, three spaced cleats 32 are secured to the bottom of the pallet, these cleats likewise being substantially coextensive with the plane portion of the sheet it. These cleats or slats may be made of wood and bolted to the sheet I i], or if made of steel, may be of channel cross section and welded to the sheet to. If the sheet i8 is made of a glass fibre reinforced plastic or similar material, the cleats may be moulded integrally with the sheet.

The spacing of the middle pair of cleats 36 less widely apart from one another than the spacing of the other cleats 39, permits the loading on the pallet of, say, several large cartons end to end crosswise of the pallet.

The cleats 353 are preferably tapered, being of greater height near the downwardly sloping front end portion of the pallet, while the cleats 32 are preferably of greater height near the upwardly sloping, back end portion of the pallet. The cleats 30 are spaced apart so as to be capable of receiving the tines or prongs of the fork of a lift truck. When the cleats 3d are of steel and of channel cross section, each cleat is bent downwardly at its front end so that when the cleat is welded to sheet 59 the front end of the cleat will form. substantially a line contact with the sheet til. To effect this downward bending of the cleat 39, a triangular portion is cut away from the two sides of the cleat at opposite points near its front end, the end of the cleat is bent downwardly until the cut edges on each side are brought into contact, and then the edges are welded, as shown at It in Fig. 6.

Secured, by welding or otherwise, to the upper surface of the upwardly sloping, back end portion id and extending laterally beyond each end of the pipe It to the sides of the pallet, are plates l I, each bent at an acute angle, so that, when one wing thereof is secured as aforesaid to said portion I6, the other wing will be substantially vertical to the plane portion of sheet Ill. lhe vertical wing of each plate II serves as an abutment or stop for the load when the latter is fully pushed onto the pallet, and prevents the load from being pressed against the forward ends of the hooks iii.

In using the apparatus, for example in a less than carload lot freighthouse, the pallet may be used in the following manner.

In handling outgoing freight, the pallet may be loaded at the freight receiving platform, and thereafter carried directly into the freight car by the lift truck, the fork thereof being inserted between the cleats 32, from the upwardly sloping, back end 14, and the hooks 28 engaged with the reinforcement H of the pallet. When the load is in proper position in the car, the operator of the lift truck will cause the load pushing mechanism to be extended so as to slide the load off the pallet. This will usually be done by pushing the load against the wall of the car and thus causing backward movement of the truck as the load is pushed from the pallet. However, if the freight car which is to receive the load is not directly available, the load may be temporarily stored while on the pallet. Later, when the freight car is to be loaded, the pallet may be used in the manner above described to carry the load into the car.

Alternatively, unless the load is of an unusual character, the fork lift truck operator may maneuver the truck and fork in such manner that th forks will engage in the spaces between the cleats 3t beneath the load at the downwardly sloping, front end 12. Since the tines of the fork lift are of tapering thickness, they operate as wedges and the load is raised from the pallet as the fork is pushed between the sheet if) and the load. The fork may then be raised and the load carried thereby carried to the freight car where it may be pushed from the tines by the pushing mechanism of the lift truck.

The cleats 36 are of sufiicient height that the pointed end portions of the truck fork may be inserted between the sheet if! and the load even though the load consists of a container which sags somewhat at the spaces between the cleats, but the cleats are not of sufficient height to permit mor than the very thin end portions of the fork tines to enter the spaces between the cleats without raising the load from the cleats. The maximum height of cleats is preferably less than one inch.

in addition to their function of keeping the load raised somewhat above the sheet H3, so as to permit the entrance of the ends of the tines the fork between them, the cleats 39 serve as reinforcements to stiffen the pallet. The cleats function similarly to hold the sheet ill adjacent the upwardly sloping, back portion it sufficiently above the floor that the tines of the fork lift may readily be inserted in the spaces between the cleats 32.

The reinforcement is, in addition to providing a part for cooperation with th latching hooks it serves as a convenient handle by which the pallet may be carried. The pallet is made as light in weight as is consistent with its necessary strength so that it is easily portable. The overall height of the pallet is small, so that large numbers may be stacked in a limited space.

While I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be apparent that numerous variations and modifications thereof may be made without departing from the underlying principles of the invention. I therefore desire, .by the following claims, to include within the scope of the invention all such variations and modifications by which substantially the results of my invention may be obtained through the use of substantially the same or equivalent means.

I claim:

1. A pallet comprising a normally substantially horizontal rectangular sheet having a plane portion and relatively narrow transverse portions at opposite ends thereof sloping upwardly and downwardly at its back and front ends, respectively, a plurality of cleats secured to said sheet on the top and bottom surfaces thereof, th cleats being substantially coextensive with the plane portion of the sheet and being spaced sufiiciently that the forks of a lift truck may be inserted between them, said cleats being longitudinally tapered in their vertical dimensions, those on the top of the sheet being of least height near the upwardly sloping, back portion, and those on the bottom of the sheet being of least height near the downwardly sloping front portion of the sheet, and means on the upwardly sloping back portion of the sheet constructed for engagement with means on the lift truck to hold the pallet on the forks thereof while a load is being pushed from the pallet.

2. A pallet comprising a normally substantially rectangular sheet having a plane portion and relatively narrow transverse portions sloping upwardly and downwardly at its back and front ends, respectively, a plurality of cleats secured to said sheet on the top and bottom surfaces thereof, the cleats being substantially coextensive with the plane portion of the sheet and being spaced sufiiciently that the forks of a lift truck may be inserted between them, the cleats secured to the top surface of the sheet being longitudinally tapered in their vertical dimensions and being of least height near the upwardly sloping back portion of the sheet, and means on said upwardly sloping back portion constructed for engagement with means on the lift truck to hold the pallet on the forks thereof while a load is being pushed from the pallet.

3. A pallet comprising a normally substan tially rectangular steel sheet having a plane portion and relatively narrow transverse portions sloping upwardly and downwardly at its back and front ends, respectively, a plurality of steel channels welded along their free edges to the top and bottom surfaces of said sheet to form cleats, the cleats being substantially coextensive with the plane portion of the sheet and being spaced sufficiently that the forks of a lift truck may be inserted between them, the cleats on the top surface of the sheet being longitudinally tapered in their vertical dimensions and being bent downwardly at their front ends so that when each cleat is welded to the sheet the front end of the cleat will form substantially a line contact with the sheet, a flat surface load stop secured near the back end of the pallet and crosswise thereof, and means on the upwardly sloping back portion of the sheet constructed for engagement with means on the lift truck to hold the pallet on the forks thereof while a load is being pushed from the pallet.

4. A pallet for use with fork lift trucks and capable of supporting loads in such manner that the load may be removed from the pallet by inserting the fork tines of the truck between the pallet and load comprising, a generally rectangular sheet having means forming ribs on both the upper and lower sides thereof, said ribs being spaced sufiiciently apart that the fork tines of the truck may be inserted between them, the

sheet being inclined when the pallet is resting on a level surface to an extent such that its forward edge is substantially at the level of such surface and its rearward edge is above such surface a sufhcient distance to permit the tines of the fork lift truck with which it is to be used to be inserted between the rearward end portion of the sheet and such surface, said ribs on the opposite sides of the pallet being similarly but oppositely tapered in their vertical dimensions, the vertical dimensions of the ribs on the top being greatest near the forward end, and the ribs on the bottom having their greatest vertical dimension near the rearward end of the sheet.

5. The combination set forth in claim 4, in which the pallet is provided with means for engagement by a part of the fork lift truck, said means comprising a pipe-like reinforcing member secured to the top of the sheet along its rearward edge.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,256,454 Bomar Sept. 16, 1941 2,338,645 James Jan. 4, 194% 2,388,458 Alionte Nov. 6, 1945 2,451,226 Kemp Oct. 12, 1948 2,610,751 Bevan Sept. 16, 1952 

